'Chefs as entertainment'

Orla Hugueniot, who has worked in the UK and is now with Nutrition Australia, says the research is relevant to Australia.

"As a nutritionist I would view the programs and the books from celebrity chefs as entertainment and not as the sole route of helping oneself achieve a healthy balanced diet," she said.

"The authors themselves are calling for nutritional information to be displayed in cookbooks as an example. I think that's a sensible way forward.

"But I think to say that authorities should consider regulating recipes demonstrated by television chefs for the likes of kind of high fat, high sugar, high salt - and having advertising restrictions on these - to my mind, based on one study, is a step too far."

The study also says no recipe from a television chef or any ready-to-cook meal met World Health Organisation guidelines on avoiding diseases caused by diet.

The authors say the best nutrition comes from cooking at home with raw ingredients.